When can unmarried children over 21 get a green card? - EB5Investors.com

When can unmarried children over 21 get a green card?

During the EB-5 process, when would be the earliest time period that the investor's unmarried children OVER age 21 could submit a petition to obtain a green card? Also, when the Form I-130 is submitted for them, when would those children be able to start to stay in the United States legally? In other words, would those children be able to stay in the United States legally as soon as the I-130 petition is filed?

Answers

Ed Beshara

Ed Beshara

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

In regard to an EB-5 project, as long as the EB-5 petition is filed before the child turns 21 years old, the child after the filing of the I-526 petition - even though older than 21 - can file an application for conditional permanent residency. During the I-526 process the investor and derivatives will have to be in possession of a nonimmigrant legal status to remain in the United States.

Salvatore Picataggio

Salvatore Picataggio

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Once you become a permanent resident, you can petition for unmarried children over 21 years of age. As a petitioning green card holder, children already in the United States will need to wait until a visa number is available before filing the I-485. They must try to maintain lawful U.S. status in the meantime. Children outside of the United States must wait for the I-130 to be approved and then go through the U.S. consulate.

A Olusanjo Omoniyi

A Olusanjo Omoniyi

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

An unmarried child over 21 cannot stay in the United States as soon as an I-130 is filed on his/her behalf. The general rule is that the I-130 for a child has to be approved, and a visa would have to be available and granted to the child before he/she can migrate to live in the United States. Also, note that the waiting period or visa availability for unmarried children over 21 depends on the country of origin of the petitioning parents. It is advisable that the I-130 petition should be filed as soon as possible.

Richard A Gump, Jr

Richard A Gump, Jr

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

When the EB-5 investor's green card is approved, he/she may file an I-130 for the unmarried, adult children. The I-130 does not confer any immigration benefits such as travel, work authorization, or ability to remain in the United States. Those benefits are not received until the green card application is approved for the unmarried, adult child.

Charles Foster

Charles Foster

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Anyone, including an unmarried child, whether over or under the age of 21, can individually file their own EB-5 investor petition on Form I-526 in order to obtain a green card in their own name. However, while technically a child at the age of 14 can file same, it raises certain legal issues as to whether a minor can enter into a valid contract. A parent who obtains their Lawful Permanent Residency on a conditional basis, which can take several years or more or even longer for Chinese nationals unless there is an increase in visa numbers, can file an I-130 petition on behalf of their adult child as soon as they obtain their permanent residency. Unfortunately, visa numbers are not available for adult children of permanent residents for about seven years. The filing of the petition does not give the child any rights to stay in the United States during that period of time.

John J Downey

John J Downey

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Approval of an I-130 does not permit the applicant to reside in the United States. A person who is an LPR may apply for their children beginning with the I-130 and then the U.S. Department of State takes over and they are on a list; depending on the country they are from, they will have to wait for a visa to come available.

Margo Chernysheva

Margo Chernysheva

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

When the investor receives his/her legal permanent status, they can apply for their unmarried children over 21. Depending on the country of origin, the wait is different and can range anywhere from 7-11 years. They can start living in the United States upon receiving their green card.

Anthony Korda

Anthony Korda

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Petitions may be filed for unmarried children over the age of 21 by permanent residents and by U.S. citizens. However, in either case, this is not an immediate visa category and the approved I-130 alone does not permit the child to remain in the United States. In order to receive advice that is appropriate to your particular case, you should consult with an experienced immigration attorney.

Steffanie J Lewis

Steffanie J Lewis

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

An unmarried offspring over 21, by definition, is not a child. An offspring over 21 is either an unmarried son or unmarried daughter. No, the son or daughter has no legal standing to be in the United States on the basis of a parents' having filed Form I-130. Form I-130 only seeks an immigrant visa for the son or daughter. It may take seven or more years for the unmarried son or daughter to enter the United States for permanent residency. The parent should seek an immigration attorney to explore other avenues by which an unmarried son or daughter might reside temporarily in the United States prior to a family-based immigrant visa being currently available to him or her. The U.S. Department of State publishes a monthly bulletin identifying the priority dates for which a visa is, or will be, currently available and applications for admission may be filed through the U.S. State Department agency, the National Visa Center (NVC). A priority date is the date upon which the Form I-130 petition was filed for the unmarried son or daughter. The monthly bulletin for July 2016 lists priority dates of 2009 and earlier as current. Thus, as of July, there is a seven year lag between filing and visa availability. USCIS notifies the petitioner when the Form I-130 is approved and sends the approval to the NVC. The NVC sends a notice when an immigrant visa becomes currently available to the beneficiary and sets up the interview at the appropriate U.S. embassy. On approval at the embassy interview, the beneficiary is granted an immigrant visa and may enter the United States as a lawful U.S. permanent resident. After entry, the now U.S. permanent resident receives a "green card" in the mail. The green card does not grant status, but is a document that can be used to show the public of his or her status in the United States. The Question Detail above assumes that one or both parents have obtained EB-5 conditional U.S. permanent resident status. It further assumes that after entering the United States as a conditional permanent resident, a parent filed Form I-130, a petition seeking an immigrant visa for a son or daughter. As explained above, under certain circumstances, it may be better to have the unmarried son or daughter make the EB-5 investment and then file Form I-130 for the parents when the son or daughter becomes a U.S. citizen (approximately five years after entering the United States as a conditional permanent resident). The unmarried son or daughter will not need to submit a petition to obtain a green card. The green card will arrive in the mail after the son or daughter has entered the United States as a permanent resident.

BoBi Ahn

BoBi Ahn

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

After the EB-5 immigrant investor obtains his/her permanent residence ("green card"), he/she can petition (I-130) for his children who have aged out (i.e., unmarried kids over 21 years of age). Once the I-130 petition is approved and the priority date for this category is current, they can file for either the immigrant visas or adjust status in the United States. This can take years for the priority date to be current, depending on the nationality as well since there is a per country limitation on each category of immigrant visas. The children will not be able to remain in the United States after the I-130, as this petition filing does not accord them a status until the adjustment of status is filed.

Lynne Feldman

Lynne Feldman

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Once the EB-5 investor or spouse gets a green card they can petition for unmarried children over 21, but there is a queue. This is the FB-2B category. See the Department of State Visa Bulletin published monthly to see what dates they are working on.

Raymond Lahoud

Raymond Lahoud

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

A child over 21 that you want to sponsor after you have received your LPR card through the EB-5 program is not as simple as filing an I-130. It depends on what the child's status is, if any. The filing of the I-130 alone will not give the over 21 year old any legal status. Contact an immigration lawyer to discuss.

Bernard P Wolfsdorf

Bernard P Wolfsdorf

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

If the child is already over 21 at the time of filing, they parents can only file for the unmarried child when they get conditional status - that takes several years, and no, the filing of the I-130 provides no right to stay in the United States.

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